Musiq Soulchild

Philadelphia-born Taalib Johnson, aka R&B artist Musiq (Soulchild), grew up the oldest of nine children. The son of a die-hard '70s soul music fan, Musiq performed at Philly showcases like the Five Spot and Wilhemina's until his management team, Mama's Boys (Jerome Hipps and Michael McArthur), brought him to the attention of Def Jam Records. Musiq's debut album, 2000's Aijuswanaseing, was recorded mostly at Touch of Jazz Studios in Philadelphia. His first single, "Just Friends (Sunny)," appeared on the soundtrack to Nutty Professor II: The Klumps, and two years later, Musiq released his second album, the spiritual and personal Juslisen, which debuted at number one on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. The following year brought the widely acclaimed Soulstar, and after moving to Atlantic, Musiq released Luvanmusiq, (2007), OnMyRadio (2008), and MusiqintheMagiq (2011). While his albums largely retained a laid-back, ballad-oriented sound, two of his biggest hits -- "B.U.D.D.Y." and "Anything" -- were uptempo club numbers that sampled disco hits from 1981 (Taana Gardner's "Heartbeat" and Central Line's "Walking Into Sunshine," respectively). In 2013, he teamed up with Syleena Johnson and producer Kemar McGregor for 9ine, a set of contemporary reggae duets released on the Shanachie label. ~ Kerry L. Smith, Rovi